Podcast Advertising Drives Sales

BY Adam Ambro
Featured image for “Podcast Advertising Drives Sales”

Let’s say it’s Monday morning and you’re getting back to your office after a nice weekend that included a win by your favorite sports team and you’re feeling good about life. You sit at your desk and play a podcast recapping your team’s win and it starts with an advertisement. Maybe it’s about a food delivery service, or a comfortable clothing brand or an innovative home security system. Whatever it may be, it’s enticing, and according to a new study conducted by NCSolutions, more than likely, you’re going to end up purchasing something you hear about from podcast advertising.

What percentage of listeners respond to podcast advertising?

NCSolutions refers to people who subscribe to six or more podcasts as “power subscribers,” and surveyed them on every aspect of their listening habits. They found more than 2/​3, 68%, of power subscribers have made a purchase compared to 42% of all podcast listeners.

Many podcast listeners are repeat buyers: 34% say they've purchased products two or more times after hearing an advertisement on a podcast, while 17% have bought products they've heard featured four or more times. In addition, 29% of all podcast listeners have used a promotional code they've heard during an audiocast.

"As their popularity has grown, podcasts have become a new advertising medium for CPG brands," said Lance Brothers, chief revenue officer, NCSolutions. "Podcast advertising hit a significant tipping point in 2021, with spending expected to reach $1 billion. As CPG brands look to justify further investments in the medium, they will need performance metrics that demonstrate the impact of their brands' podcast advertising on incremental sales."

Advertising attitudes and products purchased

According to NCSolutions, 1/​3 of all podcast listeners, 33%, said ads during a podcast are a good way for advertisers to reach them and 27% find ads are enjoyable to listen to. However, power subscribers are even more likely to welcome podcast advertising, finding it useful and relevant. Among power subscribers, 42% feel podcast advertising is a good way for brands to reach out to them.

What are they buying? Well, three of the top five types of products purchased because of podcast advertising are: food and beverage, beauty and grooming, and health and wellness:

  • 42% of all listeners purchased food and beverage products
  • 35% purchased beauty and grooming products
  • 31% bought health and wellness items

One aspect your advertisers should be aware of when thinking of podcast advertising is an endorsement coming from the host.

"A podcast is a personal medium,” said Linda Dupree, CEO NCSolutions. “Hosts are very influential when in the ears of subscribers and partnering with a podcaster who speaks to your audience can be a very powerful strategy. Together, CPG brands have a real opportunity to connect and influence a listener's purchase decisions; however just like any advertising campaign, there is a need to measure outcomes to fully realize the sales impact."

How your advertisers can use this information

For starters, you can use one of the multiple AudienceSCAN profiles for podcast listeners found in AdMall, powered by SalesFuel. Podcast advertising is all about targeting the right audience and what better way to understand your target audiences for your advertisers than using AudienceSCAN. According to the AudienceSCAN purchase intent profile of podcast ad responders, 15.0% of US adults have heard an advertisement mentioned on an audio podcast within the last 30 days that led them to take action.

The consumer prospects are there for the taking and the world of podcasts and podcast advertising is only going to grow. According to NCSolutions, 88% of respondents said the time they've spent listening has either stayed the same or increased during the COVID-​19 pandemic. That’s a huge well of opportunity that your advertisers can tap into.

Photo by Magda Ehlers from Pexels


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